MONDAY, NOV. 28TH - ALFIERI

In the north of Morocco lies the Spanish enclave of Melilla, a piece of Europe on African land. Over a thousand of African migrants live on the mountain, peering hopefully at the fence that separates Morocco and Spain. Abou from Mali, at once character and cameraman, is one of them. Along with his comrades, he has been trying to jump over that fence for more than a year. Thanks to the video camera, at least he has found a way to express himself and give meaning to his existence. “When I film, I feel like I exist.”

Monday, November 28th, Spazio Alfieri, 4:30 pm

NOTES ON THE OTHER
by Sergio Oksman
(Spain, 2009, 13’)

A man lies on the ground in a street in Pamplona, in 1924, after the bulls’ stampede of the popular celebration. The novelist Ernest Hemingway sees the scene, and declares right at that moment he wants to be that man. A film about identity as desire, aspiration, disguise, and above all unending narrative in which story and discourse are cleverly mixed.

WHILE THEY WATCHED
by Jake J. Smith
(UK, South Korea, Ireland, 2016, 90’)

A documentary on North Korea set in a dystopic future where the regime has collapsed. By way of this device, the film brings on-going state crimes to our attention and questions the moral stance of regional and global powers for their inaction toward the dictatorship ruling North Korea.

Monday, November 28th, Spazio Alfieri, 8:45 pm

NIHNA / NOUS
by Danielle Arbid
(France, Lebanon, 2005, 11’)

Two characters only, or rather three: one of them is the film director, Danielle Arbid; the second is Danielle’s father, the healthy, lively version of the past, with a mouth to speak with and eyes to see with; the third is the same man in the present, a very ill one, nearing his end. We see him only from the back, no face, no voice. A creature about to go whose presence the film director seems to be afraid of – or maybe, she fears his absence even more. The fear of loss is mixed with the fear of getting lost.

Beirut, 1983. The secret life of 12-year-old Lina pivots on Siham, her aunt’s cleaning woman, six years older than she. Even though Lina stands by her side and supports her clandestine affairs, the little one is hardly noticed by Siham and the rest of her family – her father above all, a destructive man, a gambler and adventurer. Among the uncertainty of a daily life dominated by war, passion, and frustration, Lina enters into the adult world without a real awareness of good or evil…

The real music revolution today is happening in Africa, where urban music played in clubs is blending with traditional styles. The latest technologies and communication speed have helped shape new, excellent talents, whose music and ideas are quickly spreading in the rest of the world. Travelling from Dakar, across Accra, Lagos, Luanda, and finally getting to Johannesburg, we meet some of the most creative and interesting young artists of the current scene. This film also features their music videos and the voice of Fela Kuti, with excerpts of unpublished archival interviews.